CALGARY- The annual report card from “Active Healthy Kids Canada” is out, and once again it is handing out a failing grade.
This year’s report focuses on keeping kids active by having them walk or bike to school, to help them get the recommended six hours of physical activity a week.
Right now Canadian children are getting a ‘D’.
Active Healthy Kids Canada says the number of children walking to school has dropped by around 50 per cent from a generation ago.
“This year our report card shines the light on the dramatic decline in active transportation,“ says the group’s Jennifer Cowie Bonne. “For example 62 percent use only inactive modes of transportation to get around. It’s even higher in Alberta at 67 per cent.”
The group acknowledges some parents are reluctant to let their children walk to school for safety reasons, but it adds that 66 per cent of Canadians agree or strongly agree that their neighbourhood is safe for kids to walk to and from school.
The results of the report are inspiring the city’s Cardel Place recreation centre to bring in new programs to promote healthy living.
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